


Land Sea and Sky

by orphan_account



Category: Dan Avidan - Fandom, Game Grumps
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fairy Tale Elements, Falling In Love, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Pirates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-24
Updated: 2016-01-11
Packaged: 2018-04-23 05:29:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 21,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4864835
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A fawn in the middle of the ocean, a siren who prefers the land and a whole gaggle of mythical friends to make fun of them for it. It may sound like a fairy tale, but a happy ending could be out of your grasp.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Seasick

**Author's Note:**

> Mythical beast au where the reader is a fawn person. Maybe you shouldn't have left the forest.

It was day twenty three at sea, and things were looking bleak. As if being a prisoner on the ship wasn't enough, now you were lost at sea. The hunger pains were worse than ever, but you still considered yourself lucky to be getting any food at all considering the circumstances. You got more than some of the crew members, because you were valuable cargo.

You shouldn't have been at sea at all, but your curiosity got the best of you. It was just too easy to sneak onto that ship that they loaded all of the lumber from your home onto. You always wondered what the sea was like. The mountains and forest were fine, but you had known only them your whole life. Your kind had such short lives, and you wanted to live yours to the fullest. Unfortunately, the path you chose may just cut your life even shorter than you expected. The ship you had stowed away on was attacked not a day after leaving, and you were found trying your best to swim in the rough salty water. The pirates had obviously never seen a fawn before. Most people never have. Your kind are experts at camouflage, but only in the forest. This was new terrain for you. When they locked you up, you had a couple roommates- a mermaid in a cramped tank and a centauride who stumbled with every movement of the ship. 

On day five, a storm hit and nearly killed the centauride who you finally convinced to sit down after she almost broke her neck when a particularly strong wave shook the ship. On day twelve, you glanced over at the mermaid's tank. She was floating at the surface with a fixed stare into a place you hoped not to go for at least a few more years. You decided not to look that way anymore. The centauride watched the tank for a good long time, though. On day thirteen, you were fed fish. 

The centauride was in much worse shape than you, but she was a fighter. You tried to give her as much of your meals as possible. She was much bigger than you, and needed all the food she could get. The crew started out treating you like dirt, but famine had made them go soft. Some would even flirt with the idea of letting you out of your cell. Though, you weren't sure if it was out of kindness, or if the crew was planning on adding deer meat to the menu. 

You were awake, but not so alert. You were naturally nocturnal, so it wasn't unusual for you to be awake at this time of night. The centauride snored softly next to you. The dirty water in the now vacant tank lightly splashed at the end of the cell. The moon was obscured by clouds, but its light was still visible. Your ears perked at a distant sound. A voice. You could hear the crew start to stir above deck and in their quarters. The most beautiful sound filled the air. It beckoned you. You could feel the ship turn and the centauride woke up. She stood on shaky legs, listening to the voice in the night. You turned to her, and just as she was about to say something, you were both tossed to the floor. 

Your head hit the floor hard and you felt far away for a moment. The centauride crashed even harder. She stopped moving all together and your heart sank. The chaos still ensued, but you kept your eyes on her. She blinked a few times and passed a hand over her face. Your relief was short-lived when you felt cold water touch your hand and felt the floor tilt forward. At first, you thought the water was from the tank, but there was too much of it. The beckoning voice was gone, replaced by screams and the sound of the ship creaking and cracking as it tilted more and more.

You were in the dark literally and figuratively. The light of the moon was barely enough to illuminate the room, and there was no way to tell what had happened to make the ship sink. You looked to the centauride for answers. She had lived in the city and was wiser than you. She looked back at you and heard your silent question.

"Sirens," She spoke this single word as if it would answer all of your questions.

"I don't know what that is," You had to shout above the all the sounds of disaster. 

"They're beasts, like us, but they live in the sea. They sing to make ships crash. I used to see a lot of news reports about them." She spoke in an incredibly calm voice. The ship was sinking at a slow, steady rate. You felt your heart race, but when you looked over to the centauride, she looked completely content. "I'm going to die. I'm going to die just like Kelly," Kelly was the mermaid's name, you assumed. She never really told you. "I know you can't swim, but you have a better chance than I do. You're smaller and can hang onto some driftwood or something. I'm too heavy. If you make it, please find my mother and sister in New York City and tell them I love them. Tell them what happened. I want them to have closure." She wasn't looking at you. She was staring off into the distance just like the mermaid only less vacant. 

"Tell me your name. We never introduced ourselves." It was pretty shameful when you thought about it. Living in close quarters for almost a month and barely talking. 

"Riley." She finally looked at you as she answered. 

"_____," You answered back. 

"_____," She spoke with a little waver in her voice. "Don't die." As if on cue, the floor gave out across the room and began to break apart around your feet. Large, sharp rocks pierced the walls and floor and you finally knew why you were sinking. The floor opened up under your hooves and you fell into the cold, salty, dark sea which had been waiting under your feet the whole time. You kept your head just above the water to take in what air was left in the ship, but Riley sank like a rock. You wanted to cry out, but it was all happening so fast. You kept going under. You weren't made for swimming any more than Riley was. If only Kelly had survived until now. The sea was her home. Even if she couldn't help you, at least she'd be free. 

You missed your opportunity to escape through the hole in the floor. Your hoof found a rafter and you stood on it, just tall enough to get one more gulp of air. Then, you were submerged. The salt water stung your eyes, but you looked around anyways. No sign of anyone. It was too dark to see where the floor had opened up. You weren't a strong enough swimmer to get out on time anyways. Your lungs already burned. You could barely move in the freezing water. It wasn't anywhere near as cold as it was when you jumped off the first ship you were on, but it was cold enough to make you shiver. It was only spring when you first left, so the water must not have gotten a chance to warm up yet wherever you were. You started to squirm, trying everything not to let go of the air in your lungs. You kick your legs and put your hands over your mouth, but it was no use. You opened your mouth and watched a cluster of bubbles rise out. "Don't breath in," you thought. Your lungs burned more than ever. You felt yourself sink. Just as you were taking in a gulp of water, two hands wrapped around your sides. You felt a tug and heard the water rush past your ears. Then, you blacked out.

...

You were on your hands and knees, vomiting out salt water. You felt fuzzy and sick and scared all at once. It just didn't feel like you were getting all the water out. You remembered what happened, but how did you get to land? Without bothering to take a look around, you collapsed onto the ground. Panting and coughing, you tried to make sense of this. You should be dead, but someone saved you. You remember two hands grabbing you and pulling you away. Was it Riley? No, she was long gone. Besides, she couldn't keep herself above water, let alone drag you along. 

Another wave of vomiting and coughing came, interrupting your thoughts. You must have swallowed a lot more water than you thought. A stomach full of salt water was never a good thing. You tried to stand up, but your arms gave out and you collapsed a little closer to the water than you would have liked. What a dismal state you were in. Exhausted, starving, still panting and coughing. You closed your eyes. You weren't sure whether you were resting, or accepting death at this point. You coughed once more and then began taking slow, deep breaths. A wet hand brushed some even wetter hair from your face, but it wasn't your own. 

"Hey," A soft, soothing voice spoke. "You're alright now." You were already too far into sleep to think anything of it. The hand stroked your cheek once more and you felt a warm sense of security as you drifted the rest of the way. Something in the back of your mind knew you should be questioning this, but the rest of you was too exhausted. It took no time at all to slip into a deep sleep full of scattered, meaningless dreams.


	2. Dream House

You weren't sure how long you were out, but it felt like days. Your fur was still wet, so that probably wasn't the case. The sun was just starting to rise into the sky, but it was already very warm. Rolling over, you realized you were lying on solid stone which burned your bare back as you rolled over. Your hooves clattered loudly as you stumbled to your feet. You felt absolutely awful. 

Foggy images of the pirate ship sinking came to mind as you tried to figure out where you were. The most logical course of action would have been to head inland, but something kept you where you were. Memories of someone saving you from the reckage and lulling you to sleep came ebbing back into your mind. You never saw the face of your saviour. You needed to thank them. So you stayed put, hoping they might return to this spot.

You waited until the sun was at its highest point in the sky. It was very hot, so you found a spot under a much larger rock which created a small cliff by the water's edge. You took extra care not to touch the water. Just feeling the little droplets spray up onto your face with the wind and waves made you sick. Or maybe it was the hunger and dehydration. Thinking about your late cell mates helped take your mind off that for the moment. You didn't weep, but felt some type of grief. Your kind didn't live very long, so death was no new concept, but the other two probably had many years left in them. 

It couldn't have been more than an half an hour before you saw a sail-like fin break the surface of the water and then dive back under not too far from the shore. The ripples of water were moving towards you, but you didn't flee. Something kept you in your spot next to the water, though, you did rise to your hooves. For a second, you believed it was the mermaid. That didn't make any sense, though. You knew for a fact she was dead. Besides, she didn't have a fin like that, and her scales were blue-green. This being had dark blue iridescent scales from what you could tell. The end of their tale splashed up out of the water once and you could make out the details of a rather large tail fin with menacing sharp edges. Maybe staying put wasn't a great idea, but you stood your ground. The being slowed as they approached you, and then broke water in what you assumed was supposed to be a dramatic entrance, but the effect was lost in the clumsy delivery. For a sea-dweller, this guy didn't look very comfortable in the water. You weren't really sure what to say, so you just awkwardly stared. 

"You're the one from the shipwreck, right? Nevermind. Stupid question. I, uh, brought you some food. It's a little completely soaked." The sea-dweller put a hand through his ridiculously curly brown hair and half-smiled in a worried sort of way, then swam up to you and dropped a completely waterlogged bag of fast food at your feet. You kneeled down and nodded in thanks. Ordinarily, the soaked nature of this meal would be a little off-putting, but you were absolutely starved. The bag immediately broke open as you picked it up. There was a soup of a salad, some soggy fries and a surprisingly dry sandwich. The plastic container the sandwich was in was just tight enough to only allow a small pool of water to build up inside. "I'm sorry," He said after your third ravenous bite of the moistened sandwich. "I tried to keep it above water at first, but it was taking too long to swim that way, and I was worried I wouldn't make it on time. You were in pretty bad shape-er-no offense." You swallowed another bite of something sandwich (you really weren't paying attention to what was on it) and spoke.

"None taken. Thank you." Your voice was very hoarse. So hoarse, it even surprised you. 

"Oh, I forgot!" He dove under water and you watched his blurry figure swim rather quickly through the water. You watched him stop and then turn back around, eventually returning to his spot right in front of you. He held up a plastic water bottle. "I dropped it on the way over. Here," He handed it to you. "I don't know how familiar you are with the ocean, but drinking salt water is a big no-no." You nodded another thanks and took a huge gulp of water.

"Thank you, again. Is it that obvious that I'm no nautical novice?" You wiped your mouth and then immediately took another swig of water. 

"I recognized that ship." He looked solemnly to the side for a moment before looking back to you. His dark brown eyes were full of memories. "It wasn't that specific ship, but I saw one like it before. I'm guessing you weren't just a guest on that ship." You shook your head.

"They captured me when they raided the cargo ship I was on." He looked surprised at this. 

"I'm sorry, but I've never seen a fawn out of the woods before. I hope that's not racist or anything." He laughed a little, but looked genuinely concerned that he may have just said something stupid.

"No I don't think. I mean, neither have I, so..." You smiled to try to reassure him that you weren't offended, but he still looked a little uneasy.

"So, why were you on that cargo ship?" You really had no good answer to his question. 

"I-I don't know. I wanted to see what the ocean was like I guess." This was true, but you felt like there was more to it you just couldn't put into words. The look on his face told you that he could sense this as well.

"Let me tell you, it's not as great as everyone tells you. I don't even like it. Everything wants to kill everything else and the mermen make me look bad. I honestly prefer land, but I guess that's just my thing." As he said this he pulled himself onto shore next to you. His long, dark blue tail was still partially in the water. If he was a land-dweller, he would have been very tall. You learned from the mermaid that a sea-dwellers tail was usually a foot or two longer than the length their legs would be if they had them. This was a pretty general rule, though. 

"Okay. It's my turn to be potentially racist. How do you live on land if you're a sea-dweller?" You felt bad asking this question, but you were genuinely curious. 

"Hmm. I guess I'll let that one slide, but only because you're a fawn." He was teasing you, but you still blushed. You hated to ask an ignorant question. His smiled disappeared when he looked at you. He must have seen your blush or maybe the involuntary folding back of your ears. "Hey, hey. I'm just kidding. That's like a legitimate question," He reassured you. "I'm not like a mermaid or anything. They can only live underwater and are stuck with those tails. I can partially transform to live on land for a little while. I still have to take a dip every few hours, though." You weren't really sure what to think.

"So you can transform into a human?" This was all you could think to ask.

"Well, kind of. Also not really. I'll still have the scales and some of the fins." He held out his arms. There was a sprinkling of blue scales which got denser on his shoulders and down his back and sides. You also noticed how incredibly huge his hands were. Like, you were smaller than most humans, so it was no rarity to see someone with bigger hands than you, but his were big even by human standards. He caught you staring and giggled a little. "Yeah that's not even normal by my species' standards." He held a hand up, palm towards you, and you compared your hands to his. The difference was incredible. Your finger tips just barely made it past were his palm ended and his fingers started. Thinking back, these were definitely the hands that grabbed you when you were underwater. Then it hit you.

"Oh geez. I totally forgot to thank you for saving me from that shipwreck." Just another link added to the "I'm a terrible person" chain you were building with this guy. He put a hand through his hair and looked away sheepishly. 

"Well, it was sort of my fault you were in danger in the first place..." His hand was on the back of his neck now as he nervously watched you out of the corner of his eye.

"I don't understand." You waited for an answer.

"Look-I-I just... I saw the flag on the ship and I knew they were bad people. I know what they do to beats like us. I just couldn't help myself. It's in my nature, so I might as well use my power to take down bad people instead- No. You know what? I have no excuse. I'm so sorry." Now his fingers were on the bridge of his nose as he shook his head. 

"I still don't understand." You were even more confused than before.

"Look, I'm sure you don't know what a siren is-" 

"I know what that is," You cut in a little too hastily. "They like sink ships, right? A-a centauride told me..." You trailed off a little, realizing you didn't actually know that much about sirens other than that's what sunk your... ship... "Are you one?" You looked the sea-dweller straight in the eyes. He looked half surprised and half ashamed. 

"I couldn't save the centauride," Was all he said as he looked away.

"You saved me, though." His expression lightened only slightly.   
"By almost killing you." He wasn't convinced his action was right.

"I would have died of starvation if you hadn't gotten me off that ship. One of us already did and who knows how many crew members had." You hadn't really thought about how the crew must have been suffering. There couldn't have been many left to run the ship.

"Wait, why would they let you die off? I thought they sold beasts." He was looking at you again with a confused expression. 

"We were blown off-course by a storm." Hadn't you told him? Or did you just expect him to know already. 

"Okay, okay, that's good. Well, not for you, but I was afraid they were coming for us." It was your turn to be confused, once again. 

"Us? Are there more sirens around here?" 

"Yes- I mean- Well, not sirens. Just other beasts. We live together here." He gestured inland. "We don't live around the humans, but we do visit the city now and then. I wasn't sure if word got to the pirates that there was a large amount of beasts living in the area. If it did, we'd be in trouble." You'd never heard of different types of beasts living in large numbers together. 

"So, you're like a herd?" You weren't sure if that was the correct terminology, but that was the first thing that came to mind. He smiled a little. 

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." He look at his hands and then back at you. "Wait, do you need help getting back to your herd?" You felt a weird feeling in your stomach as he said this.

"I never had any intention of returning to them," You said coldly. You had no reason to leave, but you really had no reason to go back either. 

"Well, what was your plan once you got off that cargo ship?" He already knew the answer. You could tell by the tone of his voice, the slight smile and quirk of his eyebrow. 

"I didn't have one," You answered with a tone which resembled that of a scolded child. 

"Well that was pretty stupid." He was joking, but you knew he was right. "Where are you from?" 

"The... woods?" What kind of a question was that? He already knew fawns came from the woods. He laughed, but after seeing your confused look, he stopped.

"You don't know what states are, do you," He asked in a somewhat amazed voice.

"No, I do. I just don't know what state the woods are in." You had only a vague knowledge of what states where. He looked more amused than anything. 

"The woods are in a lot of states, you know." He leaned back on his hands. "Alright here's the thing, you can stay with us until we find out where your herd is. It's the least I can do after almost killing you." He sat back up. "But first, I'm gonna need you to go find a satyr named Arin and tell him I'm here. I, well, when I transform I'm gonna need clothes. Also, you might wanna borrow something from Suzy. I don't know what fawn culture is like, but here we don't go naked." He gave an amused half-smile when you covered yourself. The spider silk and leaf clothes you were wearing when you left didn't endure the journey well. "Ah, so fawns do wear clothes. Well, I'm sure one of the girls will lend you something. Oh, I'm Dan by the way. Or Danny if you like."   
"_____," You replied. You needed to get better at introducing yourself to new people. "Were will, um, Arin be?"

"Just keep going that way," He pointed with one long finger in the direction you were supposed to go. "You won't miss the place." You nodded and trotted off. There was really no reason to rush, but you wanted to get out of sight as soon as possible. It wasn't just that you were embarrassed about being undressed, which you were, but you just really needed the time alone. The siren seemed like a nice guy, but it was just in your nature to be reclusive. Just as it was apparently in his nature to sink ships. Maybe your habits were a bit less destructive. 

It didn't take long at all to find the house. It had to be the right place. You weren't exactly an expert on modern architecture, but this place was definitely an oddity. It looked as if it were just a bunch of smaller buildings mashed together. Aside from this and the sheer size of the residence, the only other really remarkable things about it were an abnormally large swimming pool and a structure on the roof which looked like an artificial tree were hundreds of birds were perched. You felt sick when you looked at the pool, so you stared at the tree instead. It reminded you of the forest. Could you blend into this artificial structure the same way you could with a real tree? You didn't belong here. 

You trotted forward a bit and something stirred atop the tree. At first it just looked like a large bird, but as the figure turned you could make out a human shape. You had heard of harpies, but this being didn't look like one. They looked at you and took flight. You suddenly felt very small. Well, smaller than usual. It took no time at all for the winged being to land gently in front of you with only the soft sound of gravel crunching under her feet. Unlike the winged beings you had seen, she had the upper body of a human, but her legs were replaced with the lower half of a long-legged bird. Her anatomy reminded you of the centauride only avian as opposed to equestrian. Her feathers and hair were the same shade of pink and she was wearing a pair of aviator goggles. Despite the warm smile she was wearing, you felt intimidated. Some of the grey birds followed her and landed around her feet.

"I..." You gulped. "Uh, Dan sent me. I'm supposed to find someone called Arin." You put one hand on your other arm and looked to the side. This was all becoming too much for you. All your life you only ever knew what was in the forest. Fawns, trees, woodland creatures, werewolves, nymphs. Everything blended in. Now you were faced with a new experience every hour, and it was starting to wear you down.

"Oh, okay. Are you a friend of Danny's or something?" She looked back at the pool for a moment. You thought about what to say for just a little too long.

"My name is _____," You said this thinking about how bad you were at introductions. "Dan saved me from some pirates who kidnapped me and two other beasts." She looked only slightly surprised.

"He's in the ocean? That's rare." It seemed odd that this was the only thing she was questioning. "Well hey, I'm Holly. Do you wanna come clean up or something? You said you were kidnapped by pirates, right? I think I know something about that. Most of us are here because it's safer to live in numbers, but if I'm not mistaken, fawns generally live in numbers anyway. Did they capture your whole herd?" So apparently this whole kidnapping thing wasn't unusual. 

"No. I wasn't with the herd." You weren't in the mood for this conversation again, but you didn't want to be rude. "I was on a boat because I wanted to see what the ocean was like." You caught the avian girl hide a smile behind her hand and give a little silent chuckle. Was it really that weird? Yeah, probably.

"Well, come on. Let's get you in the shower and find you something to wear. I'll tell Arin to go find Danny." Holly turned towards the building and waved you forward. You followed a little too close behind. You felt smaller and smaller the closer you got. The door was very large, and already cracked open. Thankfully, there wasn't anyone in the first couple of rooms you passed through. Finally, she stopped at a door and turned back to you. "Here's the bathroom. I'll set out something for you to wear in front of the door. I'll tell everyone you're here." That was exactly what you didn't want, but you nodded anyways and stepped into the dark room. "The light switch is right here," She said as She flipped a small switch to the side of the door frame. There was a short pause and then the room lit up. She began to close the door and smiled. "Hey," Her smile turned sad. "They won't find you here." You assumed she was referring to the pirates. 

"Thank you." You really were thankful, but you just wanted a moment alone. She nodded and closed the door. You listened to her claws click across the wooden floor of the neighboring room. Now, you just had to figure out how this worked. Like the majority of modern technology, you knew of showers, but weren't super familiar with how they worked. 

Once you got a good look at the mechanism, it seemed pretty simple. You got the water running, but getting it to be a comfortable temperature wasn't easy. You were sure it wouldn't take to get used to the controls, and eventually have no trouble at all getting the water to be the right temperature. You showered for probably just a little longer than you should have. Even though it felt nice, being wet still made you ferl a little sick. Once you got out, it took a very long time to dry off all of your fur. You could hear people walking around outside. 

You recognized the clicking of Holly's talons on the floor. This was accompanied by the sound of hoofs and heavy footsteps. The door muffled the familiar sound of Dan and Holly's voices, as well as an unfamiliar voice which was just a bit too loud. You decided to poke your head outside the door, but didn't see anyone in the immediate area. You did, however, see the clothes Holly left for you. You supposed you were dry enough to get dressed. 

You stepped out in a simple white dress made of very light fabric. It had little red, orange and yellow flowers around the collar and the sleeves fell off your shoulders. You weren't sure if this. was intentional, or if the dress was just a little big. on you. You really liked the way it flowed. It wasn't too far off from something you would have worn back home, but it was definitely easier to move in and less revealing. You felt strangely confident as you went searching for the others. 

You couldn't hear them anymore, but they couldn't have been far. You went through the rooms you remembered passing through when you came in, and nearly ran straight into someone. Looking up, you realized this someone was Dan. You almost didn't recognize him towering over you. His hair was still soggy and his ears still sprouted out into little blue fins, but he was a whole new animal on land. You knew he would probably be tall, but it just didn't click that he'd be smiling down at you from that high up. 

"Aw, look at you," He said as he looked you over. "That dress looks really nice on you, not that I didn't like the nude look." He laughed a little too much at his own joke, but it was a wonderful sound.

"Thanks," You laughed in response. For a split second, you thought you saw his expression soften when you laughed. "I like your outfit, too." You really did. Something about the look of the leather jacket on top of the flannel was aesthetically pleasing. Well, on him it was. The only problem was his shoes. They were ugly and they were huge. Of course, you couldn't even wear shoes, so who were you to judge? Once again he was laughing, but it was more of a soft chuckle. 

"Well come on, let me show you where you'll be staying." He put a hand on your back and lightly guided you forward. You weren't a fan of leading the way, but you just went with it. 

You were walking down a long hallway, and it was obvious where one section of the building ended and the next began. The floor wasn't even made of the same material and the overall style of the different living quarters was a drastic change. You thought you caught a glance of another being, but Dan just nudged you forward still. Once again, the scenery changed, and Dan slowed down. You felt something deep inside you. A feeling of bliss. You wanted to just melt into the floorboards. 

"Just ignore it," Dan said in a slightly amused tone. "After living with him for a while, that effect will be long gone." He giggled a little and kept easing you along. You didn't want to leave this place, but you kept going. 

Finally, he stopped at a door which lead into a small room with a window that looked out onto the pool. There was a door on one side of the room which probably let out outside. It was an amazingly cozy living space. Not quite as big as the other rooms you had seen. 

"This room is kind of unoccupied. It used to be mine." He moved a few things around and folded out a couch in the corner of the room into a bed. "I know it's not much, but you can stay here until we figure something else out."

"Hey, I spent the past month sleeping on the floor of a prison cell in a pirate ship. This looks like heaven to me." This was no lie. "So you said this was your old room? Where's your new one?" He pointed out the window with his thumb. You walked over and peered out. After a second, you saw something you had missed before. There was a little building by the side of the pool. At closer examination, it looked like the building extended underground and let out into the pool somehow. "Well, looks like I won't be paying you a visit." Dan laughed. 

"Don't worry, the room itself isn't underwater. Suzy cast a spell so none of it can leak in." You recognized that name. She must have been another resident in the huge house. You studied the building for a couple minutes. but looking at the water made you feel sick, so you turned away. Dan must have picked up on this. "Hey, hey what's wrong?" 

"I'm sorry, but I think I was on that boat too long. Just looking at the water makes me feel sick," You smiled a little just to reassure him you were okay.

"I totally get it. Maybe you should lay down for a little while. Aren't you nocturnal anyways?" Now that he mentioned it, you were a little drowsy. "Here, you can sleep in one of my old shirts." He dug through a pile of random objects and tossed you a plain maroon tee. You caught it and looked down at it for a while.

"Why are you doing all this for me," You asked, still looking down at the shirt. You could feel him looking at you. 

"Hey, you've been through a lot." His voice became soft and soothing. It gave you slight chills. "Just get some rest. You need some time to recover." You looked up and he was smiling sadly at you. You gave a half smile and watched as he walked back the way you both came from and lightly shut the door. 

He was right. You needed rest, but you just couldn't fall asleep. Wearing Dan's t-shirt, you went through the second door into the warm air outside. You walked up to the pool and kneeled down. You put one hand in, and felt dizzy. The water was so cold, it made your skin crawl. You pulled away and took a few steps back. Suddenly, a familiar head of hair broke the surface of the water.

"What are you doing awake?" he shook his head a little and some water splashed on you. You jumped back a little. "Oh my gosh I'm sorry, ____." 

"It's fine." You sat down a safe distance from the pool and he smiled. "I thought you liked land better."

"Well, I like 'not the ocean' better was really what I meant." He dove underwater and started doing little twists and flips, obviously showing off, but he looked like he was enjoying himself. Getting close to the water didn't make you sick when you focused your attention on him instead. Watching him swim around at fantastic speeds was mesmerizing. You even considered dipping your hooves in the water a couple times, but maybe that was still too much. Still, you could stay out here forever. 

Honestly, staying forever didn't sound so bad now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What have you gotten yourself into?


	3. Who, What, Were?

You must have fallen asleep by the pool. You had no recollection of returning to Danny's old room, and there were multiple sets of wet finger prints on the shirt you were wearing. He must have carried you back, which was surprising. He didn't seem like he would be strong enough in his land form to carry you. 

The sun was just starting to come up. If you were back home, it would be about time to wind down, but you weren't home. Adapting to a diurnal sleeping schedule would probably be beneficial. Despite still being tired, you decided to start by getting out of bed and getting dressed in that same white dress you liked so much, but only got to wear for a short period of time. 

Unless everyone else in the house was nocturnal, you may have miscalculated what an appropriate time to start the day was. It was so quite, all you could hear was the clattering of your own two hooves across the hardwood floors. You considered going back to find some socks so you wouldn't wake anyone, but honestly, you were already lost. It should have been easy, just going down that long hallway, but you must have made a wrong turn somewhere. Despite the very homey feel of the overall decor, you felt very uneasy. How many beings even lived here? Did they all know you were staying? It would almost certainly end badly if they weren't aware of your presence and found you wandering around their home like a lost fairy in a pixie nest. 

As you continued on your entirely uncertain path, every terrible possibility swirled through your mind at once. You were almost ready to collapse in on yourself with anxiety when suddenly, a feeling of bliss shooed all of your worries away. Something seemed familiar about this, but you felt no need to care about such things. Your path now had a destination, but it was not a consciously decided one. You would have thought you were floating was it not for the sound produced each time a hoof connected with the floor. There were no windows in this portion of the building, but something was illuminating the room ahead. Very dimly, but still a noticeable amount of light in the darkness. Anxiety and bliss battled for dominance in your mind. You slowed down as you got closer to the source of the glow, and peered into the room. 

It was a kitchen, and in the kitchen was a man who looked surprised to see you, but too tired to really reveal the true extent of his shock. 

"I-I'm _____," You said just a little too hastily. "I'm a guest of, er um, Danny brought me here. Well, I walked, but he invited me-" Your voice cracked in an ugly way and you stopped to take in the man's no less confused expression. 

"Uh, hello. I'm Mark," He said after staring for just a little too long. Behind him, six tired wings gave a slight flutter which looked involuntary. "Do you..." He dragged out the word as if buying time to process all of this. "Do you want some breakfast? I made more toast than I know what to do with." This seemed like an odd response. Why did everyone in this place just accept your presence without question? "Well, I'll just put it here." He set down a plate on the counter with entirely too much food on it. "Sorry to leave so soon, but I have a lot of work to do." From such an angelic being, you expected a grand exit. Instead, he just tiredly trudged out of they kitchen. You watched until the. soft glow emanating from him was completely out of sight, and then stepped over to the plate on the counter.

The only thing there was toast. Way more than you could ever eat, so you just took one slice. It was very dark without Mark in the room, but you could see in the dark. One perk of being nocturnal. And with this night vision, you saw a small figure tiptoe into the kitchen. They walked right in front of you like you weren't there. "Um, hi?" This was all you could think to say. They seemed to jump three feet in the air as if they weren't aware you had been sitting there.

"You can see me?" They asked in a high-pitched, but male voice. They must have thought it was too dark.

"I have night vision," You answered. 

"But you still shouldn't be able to see me." They sounded disappointed in themselves. You took a step closer to them to get a better look. It was the eyes, fully silver, that gave it away. You knew very well that this was a nymph. Fawns and nymphs shared a strange bond in the wilderness. Both were masters of camouflage, but they could see each other. This formed a sort of union between the two races. The nymphs taught fawns how to hide in creeks and the fawns taught nymphs how to hide amongst the trees. Wherever you found a colony of one, a colony of the other was always close by. Sometimes they'd even live together. And during a full moon, it was always safer to have both around to escape the jaws of werewolf packs.

"I'm probably the only one here who can," You assumed that there were no other being here who could see a nymph judging on how this one reacted when you saw them. "I'm ____. I'm a fawn." Nymphs didn't have night vision, so maybe they couldn't see you in the dark room.

"I'm Kevin. I thought fawns only lived in the forest." You were getting used to people saying this. 

"To be honest, I thought the same things about nymphs." You felt more confident in this conversation. Before, everyone seemed to know more about you than you knew about them, but now you were on even ground.

"You got me there. Sorry, I just wasn't expecting a fawn. I heard you were staying here, but I didn't really know what you were. I thought you were just another satyr, but I guess the antlers kind of give it away. And the size. No offence, but you're kind of small even for a fawn." You blushed a little in response to the nymph's criticism. 

"Look who's talking." He crinkled his nose at you and you both laughed a little. "I'm actually glad you're here," You said while looking down at your hands. "I've never seen anything like the others. I know Danny's a siren, but what about Holly and-what was his name- the guy who was just here." You thought for a second. "Mark. Mark sounds right."

"I'm guessing you haven't spent much time out of the forest," Kevin said in a knowing tone. "It was hard when I left, too. I'm actually glad you're here now. I'm not the new guy anymore." That last part didn't sound promising, but it still felt good to know Kevin went through a similar transition period as you. "Don't worry, you'll learn to blend in. Literally." You could tell he was camouflaging himself, but it really lost dramatic effect when you could still see him perfectly fine.

"So it is possible to blend into artificial structures?" You thought back to that huge tree on top of the house.

"Yeah, it takes time to get used to it, though. You're gonna wanna learn fast. There's supposed to be a full moon soon, and there are a couple of beasts here you might wanna look out for around that time." You felt your heart drop at the idea that there was a werewolf in the building. You couldn't remember a time when a full moon night was free of casualties in your herd. 

"What kind of beasts? Werewolves?" You tried to sound calm, but you could tell by the look Kevin gave you that it wasn't working. 

"Don't worry, we know how to handle it. They have learned to gain partial control." This didn't answer your question. You looked at Kevin, silently asking for more information. "Yes, ones a werewolf. The other is a shapeshifter who just gets a little unstable during full moons. They're both very nice people." This was not good. You couldn't stay in the same house as a werewolf. 

"Can you, uh, teach me to blend in now?" You didn't want to leave, but suddenly it felt a lot less safe. 

...

You tagged along with Kevin until Danny showed up with tired eyes and a cup of coffee in his hands. It was still pretty early, but you were already feeling your nocturnal habits gripping at you, trying to drag you back to bed. Danny offered you some coffee, and you burnt your tongue. This got a good laugh out of him, but you could tell he felt bad. Overall, it was a good morning, save for the burnt tongue.

"So, um, Danny?" You approached the topic with caution.

"What's up," He was looking somewhere else before you spoke, and the sudden turn of his head caused brown curls to fly everywhere. He definitely wasn't tired anymore. 

"Kevin told me there's a werewolf living here, and, uh, I guess I'm a little spooked." You knew you were talking about someone Danny knew personally, so you tried to tread lightly.

"Oh Barry? He's totally chill. We used to be roommate before I got the sweet pool setup." This just made things even harder.

"Okay, so I'm not trying to be like, racist or something, but werewolves sort of consistently murdered other fawns in my herd back when I lived in the woods. I'm just still getting used to not living in the wild." You tried to sound as casual as possible, but it was tricky considering what was being said. Dan looked at you with an expression you couldn't quite read. Something along the lines of empathy and confusion, but presented with just a hint of a smile.

"Hey, don't worry. You're used to wild werewolves. Barry's so tame, we joke that he's domesticated. If I were you, I'd be more concerned about Ross. Ever lived with an imp before?" You clasped your fingers together tightly as Dan laughed. You'd take his word on this, but that wouldn't stop you from remaining wary of the situation. And there was still that other shapeshifter you knew nothing about.

When you thought about it, you really knew almost nothing about most of the beasts you were now, technically, living with. "Can you tell me about the others?" You were legitimately curious about everyone now. Even after meeting Holly and Mark, you weren't sure what they were. "Is Mark some type of angel?"

"What were you doing up early enough to meet Mark?" Danny fake-scolded you with a dramatic wave of his arms. "Yeah, he's a seraph. Poor guy is busy from sunrise to sunset." That would explain why he was up so early and in such a hurry to leave.

"And Holly? She's not a harpy, but she's avian, right?" You liked Holly. You were glad she was the one to greet you when you first arrived at the house.

"Ooh, I guess they teach you more in forest-school than I thought." You hit him playfully and you both laughed a little. Though, you did still wish you could have come up with a comeback. "You're right, she's a kinnara. Not very common around here, and way nicer than harpies or those flying sirens. They totally make me look bad." 

"Flying sirens, eh?" You tried to picture Danny with wings. Somehow the thought of those wings enveloping you snuck into your mind and you felt yourself blush a little. Changing the subject, you continued with, "So I know Kevin, you mentioned Barry and Ross. Who else? I've heard a lot of talk about a satyr and Kevin said something about another shapeshifter." 

"Those two just happen to be married, actually. Arin, the satyr, is pretty introverted, but he's super fun once you get to know him and spend time with him. Suzy is the sweetest thing, but sometimes her shapeshifting gets a little crazy." This sounded similar to what Kevin said.

"You said something about Suzy casting a spell or something?" It rang a bell, but maybe you were mistaken. 

"All female shapeshifters are witches. Geez, I though everyone knew that," He teased. You sort of hoped that This wasn't common knowledge, though. You knew living in the woods your whole life gave you an excuse, but it still didn't feel good to be less knowledgeable than everyone else.

"Is that all," You asked. Somehow, you had become convinced that there were dozens of bests living here, but there weren't even enough to make a proper herd.

"What? Were you hoping for a nice buck or some type of gazelle? I mean, I don't know what you're into." This got a laugh out of you. An actual, candid laugh. Danny's expression visibly softened. No, Danny as a whole seemed to melt as you laughed. Before, you had just thrown around little giggles and snorts. Even at those, he always seemed to stop to take it in. What were you doing to this guy? What was he doing to you? You decided to break the tension, nervous about what was happening. 

"Do you know any attractive gazelles? Maybe we could go out and find some. You can chat up some dolphins, or whatever guys like you are into." The joke had drastically decreased in effect the second time around, but you needed to say something to get the attention off of you. Even so, he laughed just as hard as before. A sound you could listen to all day. All night. 

"First, let's introduce you to some nerds." He put a hand on your back just like when he was guiding you to his room and started walking forward. Only this time, you were eager to see what was ahead instead of nervous. The way he talked about these beasts, they just had to be good people. Maybe even the werewolf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha see what I did with the title there
> 
> So sorry it took so long. I've been terribly busy. Follow me on Tumblr for updates and more excuses when I take to long to write a chapter.


	4. Shifty Figures

Meeting the nerds was delayed several days due to unexpected pre-full moon shifting. Just when you were starting to accept that you were living with a werewolf, all sense of security had been shattered. You spent those days locked in Danny's old room while everything was being sorted out. He came to visit you often, and tried to make sure you were never alone for too long. You weren't sure whether it was too make sure you felt safe or to make sure you were safe, but thinking about the latter really negated the effects of the first option.

Despite the looming danger, you managed to spend some quality time with Danny and found yourself momentarily forgetting about the blood-thirsty werewolf nearby a couple times. He even coaxed you outside a few times and convinced you to dip your hooves in the pool. He still couldn't get you all the way in, though. Your stomach turned every time you though about being submerged in water, and suddenly the pool would feel a lot colder. He usually gave up after at least the millionth time asking you to "just take a quick dip". You weren't sure why he wanted you in the water so badly, but he wasn't going to get what he wanted. Even if the thought didn't make your skin crawl, there was still the small detail that you literally couldn't swim to save your life.

After a little over a week, it was determined that the house was safe again. You were still reluctant, but if worse came to worse, at least your indoor camouflage skills were improving. You were at least a little excited to finally meet the others. Only now you were at least one hundred percent more wary of Barry. The others had to be okay, though. Right?

You were almost certain Arin wanted you gone. He just seemed so uninterested in the entire situation. You even tried to make your kidnapping sound way more interesting than it was, but you still got almost no reaction. Danny assured you that Arin was just like this sometimes, but you weren't convinced. Ross was there as well, but you only got to briefly introduce yourself before he was out the door. He seemed nice, though. At least as far as imps went. 

Suzy was next on the list. Danny was probably saving Barry for last on purpose. As the two of you got closer to Suzy's "workplace", you began to notice an increase in bugs around the house. Some were dead and pinned up on the walls, and others were crawling alongside the dead specimens as if they were still living company. You had nothing against bugs, but there were way too many of them here; and that was coming from someone who lived in the woods. Even so, there was a certain charm to her quarters. All the other rooms you had visited seemed very similar. Of course, everyone had there own way of organization, there own interests, different needs, ect., but they all seemed to follow some shared rule of how things were supposed to look. Suzy didn't follow that rule. Instead of lighter colors, the walls were painted purple. Her decorating style had a very Gothic feeling to it which deviated from the homey feel you observed in the rest of the house. You had to admit, you were a fan. You could only wonder how this style clashed with Arin's in the rooms the two of them shared. 

"I've been expecting you," A very high voice sounded from seemingly nowhere. You could here the joking tone clearly in who you could only assume to be Suzy's voice. She laughed before stating, "Arin just texted me, actually." You still didn't know where she was. You looked around and Danny seemed to take notice.

"Aw, come on. You're confusing the poor thing," He joked as he bent down and put both hands on your shoulders, giving a slight shake and looking up at what appeared to be nothing. You tried to shrug free, but he was putting just enough weight on you so you were unable to move. It was something he had started to do quite frequently in just the short time you had spent getting to know Arin. At some point he realized you were too weak to move him, and that him doing this got you just worked up enough to turn your face bright red. It was all in good fun, but you wished he would at least put off doing it until after you introduced yourself to this new person.

"Oh, okay," Suzy said in an overly-dramatic disappointed tone. Suddenly, the spot on the ceiling where Dan had been looking began to move and stretch down towards the floor before twisting and forming into a surprisingly normal, but beautiful, woman. She kept this form for a few moments before shifting a few more times. First into Danny, then back to what you assumed to be her true form. Then, she paused and stared you down for just a little too long before turning into you for only a brief second before snapping back to herself. 

"Stop showing off," Danny said playfully as he shifted just a little more weight onto your shoulders. You stumbled a little as you tried to keep him up. You never won this game. At least twice during your conversation with Arin, you lost your balance as Danny slumped on top of you. One of those times, you ended up on the floor. 

"Hi, I'm ____," You said, trying your best to ignore Danny's ragdoll act. Why was he doing this? He was acting like a dumb puppy. Suzy continued shifting into slight variations of her true form. It was almost like she had very limited control over it, and that scared you.

"I'm Suzy. It's nice to meet you." Well, at least she was friendly. "If you need any spells cast, just come bug me. And hey, maybe when we get you set up with your own room I can cast a charm to make trees grow in there or something." Your own room? Why would you need a room if you were just staying temporarily? That was the plan, right? You felt Dan shift his weight off of you and back onto his own feet. 

"Uh, yeah, thamks," He said in the most candid tone he could muster under the sudden stress you could sense on him. 

"Thank you, Suzy, but I'm probably not going to stay much longer." You thought you were coming to the rescue of this awkward situation, but somehow it got worse. You could feel it. You could feel Dan put his hand on his neck, the slightly slower pace of Suzy's shifting, the feeling in your own gut. The slight burn in the back of your throat. 

You didn't stay much longer after that, and the mood never quite recovered. Suzy just went back to work and Dan led you out of the room with a much gentler hand in-between your shoulder blades. He didn't say much, and didn't take you to see Barry. He just took you right back to his old room. You walked inside, but he stayed in the doorway. 

"So, um, what was your herd like?" He asked this as he looked to the corner of the room. 

"I don't know... Pretty extensive I guess. There were a lot of fawns there." You really didn't know how to answer his question. You never thought of them as being any particular way.

"Family? Friends? Anyone waiting for you back home?" No. There really wasn't. 

"Fawns generally don't get attached to, well..." Where you really going to do this? "Weak links I guess. It's not uncommon for our kind to be killed by predators, and the weak go first." God, you were really going to talk about it.

"What do you mean?" That was exactly the question you weren't hoping for.

"Dan, look at me." You turned completely to him and motioned up and down your body with both hands. "I'm a runt. I was always the one who ran at the back of the herd because I was expendable. I didn't even get a name until I was a year old because no one wanted to get even a little attached to me. That's like five years old in human years. Why do you think I'm so bad at introducing myself?" You kept a steady tone, but you felt yourself getting emotional. "No one's wondering where I am, Dan. They already learned to accept that I was born venison. I was never worth their time." Strangely, you didn't feel tears coming on. You just felt empty. The only emotion you felt was a slight pang of guilt as you saw the look of sorrow Danny was giving you. You turned away and heard him move towards you slowly. You barely even noticed when he put his arms around you and pressed your head to his chest, nuzzling the top of your head gently, careful to avoid your small antlers.

"Well, I think you were damn worth saving," He spoke gently into your hair. It was the same tone that lulled you to sleep the night you almost drowned. He saved you. He didn't leave you to die because you were weak. "Stay with me." He stood up to full height and backed away, still keeping his hands on your shoulders. He looked at you, trying to read you. Your eyes met his. So full of a love and compassion you never knew back home. 

"I'll stay." You didn't have to think about. You knew you wanted to stay. You knew the entire time. He didn't smile, but drew you closer. He had to lean down far too much, but his lips met yours. It was a warm, passionate kiss, but there was still a melancholy feeling to the entire situation. He pulled away, and you pressed your forehead to his as you closed your eyes. He put his arms around you and ran his long fingers up and down your back, gently rocking you side to side. Before you knew it, he scooped you up and set you on the bed, snuggling up beside you. You wanted to be as close to him as possibly, and you wanted to stay there forever.

You would stay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all of your support!


	5. Fish Tale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So so sorry about the wait. I have no excuse.

Waking up at odd hours of the morning wasn't unusual for you. It still took you a second to remember where you were, and another to remember why you were surrounded by his warmth. He seemed to stir, as if he knew you were awake. As if he could feel you examining the shimmer of the blue scales which lightly sprinkled his skin in the moonlight creeping in through a fold in the curtains. You brushed away a few brown curls from his face and let your hand linger there. You had only ever seen Danny filled with entirely too much energy. All must be right with the world for him to look so peaceful. 

You never fell fully asleep after this, but your mind was at ease. You both stayed in bed for just a little too long. The room had begun to warm with the rays of the mid-morning sun. At this point, neither of you were asleep, but getting out of bed was obviously not on either of your agendas. Every time you moved in a way which suggested you were going to leave, Danny gently pulled you back into his warmth. He whispered soft pleads for you to stay into your neck. He was still very drowsy. 

Something in you wanted to just melt in his arms, but a much bigger part of you was awake and playful. You squirmed a little and tried to crawl out of bed, but Danny put both arms around you and held just tight enough to keep you in place, laughing tiredly into your hair.

"Where are you going, /deer/," He chuckled at his own joke, as usual, a little too much. 

"I want breakfast," You whined. "I'm hungry-" You dragged out the last word for effect as you pretended to try desperately to escape. 

"What about me, /doe/," Another chuckle. This one was softer. 

"Your puns are only making me want to leave more," You teased as you turned to lay flat on your back and angled your head to look at Danny. He had one arm across you and was slightly propped up on the other, grinning the goofiest grin down at you. 

"Just let me /fawn/ over you a little more." His grin widened with pride.

"Alright, that's it." You rolled your eyes, but you were wearing a grin just as big as his. You started to scoot out of bed, but he kept his arm around you. You propped yourself up on both elbows.

"Nope. Nuh-uh. Out of the question," He shook his head and his mess of hair grew even more disheveled. Just as you became aware of what a mess you must have been, Danny leaned over you and planted a kiss right on your lips. More of a peck, but you still felt sparks. He smiled down at you with such a mix of mischief and a maintained amount of goofiness. You did the first thing that came to mind and gave him a return-peck right on his nose. The giggle that came from him was beautiful enough to put any love song to shame. He moved to position himself right over top of you, holding himself up with a hand on either side of you. As He leaned in again, you let yourself fall back into the pillow and wrapped your arms around his shoulders. You felt heat rush through your body as he kissed your neck repeatedly.

When he drew back and looked into your eyes, the heat only intensified. That is, until the door opened up and two men walked in. They both froze in their tracks. You recognized Arin, but the other you had not seen before. Ironically, you were were the only one who didn't have a deer-in-the-headlights look on your face. Danny hastily got off of you and you sat up. Honestly, the look on all of their faces was priceless. You knew you should be embarrassed, and you were to some degree, but something about the hurried way the other two ducked out of the room after staying just a few seconds too long. It was just hilarious to you. Maybe it was just a defense mechanism to save you from dying of embarrassment, but you started laughing. Just a few chuckles at first, but soon you were in a giggling fit. Danny looked relieved that you weren't upset, and laughed a little, too. 

"How about that breakfast now," He offered, putting an arm over your shoulders. 

"What're we gonna say to the other," You asked, still giggling a little. 

"I don't know about you, but I've got a few choice words for them," He answered jokingly. 

...

You were lead to a different kitchen than the one you had found when you first met Mark and Kevin. This one was a lot bigger and nicer. The appliances looked newer, too. Arin and the other man were sitting at the dining table together, eating some brightly-colored cereal. You had tried this cereal before. All the colors tasted the same. They looked up when the two of you walked in, wearing the smuggest grins you had ever seen. Danny threw his hands up theatrically. 

"What the fuck, guys. I was about to get some." He held an almost-serious expression for about two seconds before laughing. Your face lit up with red heat, but you laughed as well. You knew somehow that this was the only way to make things less awkward; by making it so extremely awkward that it just becomes a joke.

"And I didn't even get to meet her first? I'm very disappointed in you, young man," The unknown man joked in a vaguely monotone voice. His teeth were long and sharp when he smiled. Your heart jumped as you realized he was probably the werewolf. Danny laughed for a while before adopting a slightly more serious tone.

"Seriously though, guys. Knock first." He threw in a set of laughs at the end to keep the situation lighthearted. 

"We didn't know she was still staying in your old room, dude," Arin said in defence. 

"I honestly thought she had just moved in with you by the pool," Barry added. "I mean, it's been a week or so and this is the first time I've seen her. Not exactly under the circumstances I had hoped. Hi, I'm Barry by the way." He smiled again and gave a slight wave. You nodded and waved back with all the enthusiasm you could muster as the unmistakable smell of werewolf breath hit you like a fallen tree. It wasn't exactly a bad smell. Something in-between pond water and smoke, but it set off your most primal survival instincts and you had to fight not to flee. 

"Hi, I'm ____," You responded. There was an obvious tone of fear in your voice which you had been trying to suppress. Luckily, no one appeared to take notice. 

"Honestly, Dan. Why would you make her stay in your dumpy old room?" You noticed a hostility in Arin's voice which didn't seem to bother anyone. Maybe that was just the way he talked.

"Well, we weren't sure if she was staying or not," Danny replied. He looked down at you and half-smiled. You had already told him you would stay, but you could see the question in his worried expression. You wanted this, but was it wise? 

You had only been there for a little over a week, and why had they welcomed you so eagerly in the first place? From the second you set foot on their property, everyone just immediately accepted that you were just part of their lives from that moment on. It seemed very strange. Of course, it wasn't unusual for your herd to take in a lost fawn or nymph without question solely because they were in need. Was this any different? Were herds of beasts just naturally compassionate in this way. Would a pack of werewolves take in a stray out of the goodness in their hearts? Maybe they would. Maybe it was you. You were the one who was strange. Never treated with the same compassion because there were ways to mend the broken ankle of a nymph who was caught in a rockslide, but there was no way to make you as strong as the other fawns. No way to fix the imperfections you were born with. Did these people know this when they took you in? Did it matter to them? You took a deep breath before speaking.

"I would like to thank you for everything you've done, but I don't think I understand why you are being so kind." You kept your gaze on the tile floor. There was a sudden heaviness in the air. Dan put a hand on your shoulder and kneeled down to where he could look you in the face. 

"There shouldn't need to be a reason, but I can give you a few reasons. There's a reason why I'm afraid of the ocean." He stood up and you tilted your head up to hold eye contact. "Those pirates, they make their money capturing and selling us. When we're sold, who knows what we'll be used for. It depends on the beast, but trust me, nothing good can happen. You wanna know how I know this? I was kept on one of those ships for at least three years. They used me to draw in other vessels to pillage. I watched so many innocent beasts get captured. I had to watch, helpless, guilty for aiding in their capture. I was only a kid, well, by siren standards. One day, they brought a very unusual couple on board. A satyr," Dan nodded to Arin who was watching with a knowing expression. "and a shapeshifter. What they didn't know was that all female shapeshifters are also witches. She summoned a storm which caused the ship to crash. A storm which never quite died out, and still hunts ships of the same purpose. I escaped and kept Arin above water as Suzy searched for land. She used her power to build a small hut for us while we tried to regroup. Every time the storm would return, we knew another pirate ship had to have been near. I ventured out into the ocean, what used to be my home, and saved any beast I could. Some returned home, some stayed for a little while, some are still here today." You looked over to Barry who had his head lowered.

"It's odd that the storm just directed you towards us instead of sinking the ship then and there. It's like it knew you needed to be here. Some of Suzy's best work if you ask me," Arin cut in. He looked very proud of his wife, and honestly, it was one of the most adorable things you'd seen in a while.

"Sometimes it works in mysterious ways," Danny agreed. "See, you're not the only one who we took in." He put a hand on your face and you put one hand over his, taking in the sensation as much as you could, almost in tears over what he had just told you. "We do this because we know what it's like to be captured, we're responsible for the storm and because I had to watch without any way to help for so long. You're no burden on us. We'd be happy to have you stay. I want you to stay." You swallowed hard. You almost weren't expecting a real answer from him, but you got one. Oh boy did you get one... 

"I was going to say yes anyways," You choked out, trying to lighten the mood. This attempt failed as you felt the first of many hot tears escape from its resting place and roll quickly down your face. Danny nearly picked you up in an eager embrace meant both to express his excitement, and comfort you. Out of the foggy corner of one stinging eye, you saw Arin and Barry stand up and walk towards you. Danny let you go just enough for you to look at them.

"Welcome to the team, kiddo," Arin said, putting a hand on your shoulder awkwardly. This expression seemed odd considering you were probably his age if not older, but you appreciated it anyways. Barry patted you on the back, but didn't say anything. Both men were giving him warning looks as if to say, "She might run off if you get to close". They knew you were afraid, and you felt terrible for it. If this was going to be your new herd, you couldn't be prejudice towards Barry. Or at least you couldn't show it. 

"Oh, come here you guys," You said as you dragged both of them down to your height and gave them both the best hug you could give two people twice your size. You felt uneasy, but not scared. Okay, maybe a little scared, but who needed to know?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking about doing an Ask the Beast Grumpsthing on Tumblr. Let me know what you think! My URL is cantabileChaos.


	6. Against the Wall

Somewhere in New York City the name Riley had become a worn out question. A sunken village found somewhere off the coast of Florida was transitioning from panic and searching to mourning. Hidden in a valley of the Rocky Mountain Range, it was just another day of loss. And in a large but somehow insignificant house found on the very edge of California, an imp and a kinnara still slept peacefully together, a seraph had finally found the time to take a break, a nymph ate cereal while holding a camouflage for no real reason, a satyr doodled something into a sketchpad full of ideas, a siren told his new mate he was going to go for a swim, his mate was still afraid of the water and the werewolf, a werewolf was well aware that the fawn was afraid of him and a shapeshifter woke up to find that she was having more and more trouble controlling her shifting. 

You would soon find out that she was not the only one.

...

Barry knew you were afraid. 

He stopped you in the hallway around dinner time and smiled sheepishly at you. 

"Uh, you know, I'm not gonna eat you or anything. I can smell the fear on you. That's not a joke. I can literally smell fear." Whether he was joking or not, he wasn't wrong. You still weren't entirely comfortable around him, and here you were, alone with him in an unfamiliar part of the house (you hated to admit it, but you were lost again.)

"I know, I just... yeah..." You really had no excuses. He was a natural predator to your species, and you grew up running away from beasts like him. You weren't afraid of him, but your instincts were.

"You know, Kevin was afraid at first, too." Barry smiled and leaned against the wall as he spoke. "Haven't left a scratch on the kid." You smiled, but the smell of him still told you to run. 

"What's it like? Are you still, like, you, or is it a completely different mind that takes over?" You hoped it wasn't rude to ask, but you had to wonder. You couldn't picture this mild-mannered guy as a ravenous beast. Even when you smelled it on him. 

"It's like you know you're doing bad things, but you can't do anything about it. I see everything through my own eyes, but it's the monster who's in control." He spoke in a casual manner, but his expression was hardened. "And before you ask, yes. I have killed fawns before." You felt your stomach turn, but you didn't think less of him. A week ago, you would've, but not now. You couldn't imagine what it was like to not be in control of your own body.

"Does it hurt." Against your better judgement, you kept asking questions.

"You're a curious one, aren't you?" He chuckled sadly and shook his head. "It hurts like hell."

"Does it hurt Suzy when she shifts?" You were suddenly very worried about her. If shifting hurt, she had to have been in constant pain.

"I couldn't tell you. I sure hope not," He answered, running a hand through his short hair. "Now it's time for me to ask you something. Well, a few things."

"Shoot." You were worried about what he was going to ask, but you were ready to answer anything after practically interrogation the poor guy. 

"First, are you, well, a kid?" You were caught off guard for a second, but realized he was probably thrown off by your size.

"No, I'm a runt." Back home you'd be ashamed to admit it, but something told you that didn't matter here.

"Oh, *phew*, that's good. I don't want Dan going to jail. Second question, how old are you?" This seemed like a reasonable follow up question. 

"Six." His eyebrows raised. "That's around thirty years old to a human." He only slightly relaxed. 

"That's still kind of weird. Okay, bonus third question. How long do fawns live?" Another fair question.

"Like, twenty years if you're lucky. Most only live to be like 10, though. We don't have very advanced medicine." You didn't understand why, but he looked distraught. He took a few steps forward until he was uncomfortably close. 

"Please don't tell the others. Tell them you'll live a normal human lifespan, just for now. It'll still break their hearts, but it'll soften the blow." He was looking you directly in the eyes and you could now clearly see how bloodshot his were.

"A-are you okay? You look a little tired," You asked, avoiding discussing your age or lifespan any further. 

"I'm fine. Just had a rough night." A smug grin crept across his face. "And apparently I wasn't the only one." It took you a little too long to get the joke.

"Oh god. Let's just get back to talking about my mortality." You laughed at your own joke the same way Danny always did. Barry didn't laugh much.

"You know, I probably shouldn't say anything, but sirens live much longer than most beasts. And most beasts live longer than fawns. I'm just not sure it's good for- well- forget it. It was rude of me to say anything. Just, please keep that in mind." He hadn't moved an inch as he spoke. You wanted to back away, but you were too frightened. And it drove you crazy to know he could smell it on you.

"So you're saying I shouldn't get close to Dan because he'll outlive me?" There was no hiding the agitation in your voice. Barry was overstepping his bounds in more ways than one. "I don't think you really-" He put a clawed hand up, shushing you.

"Not so loud, Bambi." The smirk in his nickname made your stomach turn. "Just consider it. If you're really dying for a partner during mating season or whatever I've heard of nymphs hooking up with fawns. Heck," His breath clouded your head as a sharp smile developed in place of his smirk. "I've even known a few werewolves who are into that." That was when your instinct and better judgement finally came to an agreement. As you slipped away, you felt like you were going to vomit. Once again, it all became too much for you. 

...

You didn't want to say anything to Dan. Not about your lifespan. Not about Barry. Eventually, both would come out, but now was not the time. You sat silently at the edge of the pool, only looking at the water when Dan was obviously trying to get your attention. He went inside a lot, but you never followed. Instead, you stared at your own hooves, thinking of everything you could possibly think of. Once again wondering if you should have just stayed home. You knew the answer was no. Even if you had died on that ship or been sold across the world, at least the ache in your bones would have been gone. The feeling of being entirely unfulfilled. You had no more of a place in the forest than you did at sea or in the sky. This may not have been the best place for you, but it was an improvement. 

"Hey," Dan said softly as he swam up to the edge of the pool and rested both arms on the ground just inches away from you. You had been so deep in thought, you hadn't noticed how dark it had gotten outside. "You've been doing a lot of thinking. I can tell. Maybe it's time to take a break. If you're not careful you could end up stuck right inside your own head." He was teasing, but obviously worried. 

"Do sirens live longer than centaurs," You asked out of the blue. He gave you an amused look.

"I don't know," he chuckled. "Sirens live a pretty long time."

"What about mermaids?" You knew where you were going with this, but you didn't like it.

"Mermaids live pretty long, too. Maybe not as long. Why are you suddenly so interested in the mortality of others? What have the others been teaching you?" This was a joke, but is wasn't.

"You would have been happier if the mermaid survived. You could have grown old together. She'd actually be able to swim with you." Everything came out wrong, but you didn't stop yourself. "The centaur, Riley, she was from the city. You would have had more to talk about with her." Dan watched you, waiting for a crack, but you were blank. You were only speaking the facts.

"____..." The right words just didn't come. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw him struggling to think of something. 

"I'm sorry," You stated in a fittingly blank manner. "I'm just tired, I guess. I should get to bed." You got to your feet. Your achy joints reminded you of how long you had been sitting in one spot.

"Hey, no, come here." Dan waved you over as if you weren't right next to him. You turned to face him. "No. Here here." He swam backwards and opened his arms wide. He wanted you to get in the water.

"You know I can't swim." You didn't move from your spot.

"I'll hold onto ya," He promised. You half-smiled and moved forward only a little. "All the way." You sat down at the. very edge and slowly dipped your hooves in. Danny swam over to you and wrapped two long arms around your waist, slowly edging you into the water.

As promised, he held tightly onto you and kept you above water from the shoulders up. You couldn't help but shake like a leaf, remembering the last time you were in the water. He only held you tighter. His dark brown eyes were half-closed, carefully looking over you. His lips were parted slightly as he put one wet hand on the back of your head and kissed you. Your tongues brushed together and your teeth only slightly grazed. He pulled away and looked deep into your eyes.

"I would have saved them if I could have, but I wouldn't trade you for either of them." He looked away and to the side, thinking of what to say next. "____," He breathed in what was almost a whisper. 

"Yes, Danny?" You barely noticed the water at this point. 

"I think I might love you," He sounded like a nervous teenager, but that made it all the more endearing. 

"I think I love you, too," You admitted in much the same manner before kissing him on the mouth. You could tell he always got excited when you were the one to kiss him. 

The two of you drifted around in the pool for as long as either of you could stand it. "Maybe we can stop this trend of all our most romantic moments starting out super heavy," He suggested at one point. You agreed. You both stared into each other's eyes and up at the night sky. The water wasn't as cold as you remembered it. And the moon, fuller than you would have liked, but that didn't matter at the moment. 

Though, it really should have.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Watch the skies


	7. Sunken Teeth

Sopping wet clothes were no fun. Once you got inside, seeing Danny's new room for the first time, they came right off. You went in the front, but he got in through the pool. When you met up, he was wrapped in a towel and looked considerably less majestic on land than he did in water. This always amused you. You literally had to peel the soaked clothes off your body. You didn't think twice about the amused way he watched you kick each article of clothing to the side. You didn't even think about the fact that you were full on stripping in front of him. You just wanted the heavy, restraining fabric off of you. When you were done, he gently approached you, an entirely different expression on his face. The towel that covered him was now being draped around you as well and you took in the sensation of his bare skin on yours. And, well, one thing led to another. 

...

Waking up in a new place now seemed like a routine part of your day. You could feel the night before as you stretched rolled over. Danny was already awake. 

"'Morning, beautiful." He planted a kiss on your forehead. He didn't have the sleepy tone of someone who just woke up. In fact, he was already dressed and wasn't laying under the covers anymore. He looked worried. "I didn't want to leave before you woke up. Well, I didn't want to leave at all, but..." He put a hand through his hair. "Something came up. I have to go on a little errand." His tone in no way suggested that this was just a "little errand".

"You're not telling me everything," You half-yawned. His guilty look told you you were right. It also told you he was a terrible liar. "Did something bad happen?"

"No, well, maybe. A friend of mine contacted me this morning. He was being really vague, but from what he did say, it sounds serious." Danny wasn't looking at you. He probably wasn't looking at anything, but was just deep in thought.

"Now you're being vague." You should have been too tired to pry like this, but this sounded to serious to just let go with a nod and a wish of good luck.

"Hey, if I had all the details, I'd tell you." No he wouldn't. "Please, just stay here. Relax. I'll be gone for little while, but everything will be fine." You knew you should have persisted with your questioning, but something told you you weren't going to get answers any time soon. If it really was something serious he had to tend to, it was probably best not to hold him up any longer anyways.

"Please be careful," You murmured as you kissed his cheek, then his lips. You lingered for a moment as reality hit you. If this really was serious, Dan could get hurt. "Please. Please be careful."

"Hey, it'll be fine. We're survivors." He smiled what should have been a reassuring smile, but you both knew it wouldn't work. "I probably won't even be gone that long."

...

It was dark. You were still alone. You stayed in Danny's room all day. You didn't feel like talking to anyone in the main house. You watched Danny leave, then Mark. Wherever Mark went, he was there more often than he was home. You waited. Took a nap despite the anxiety that grew more intense with every hour. When you woke up, you looked outside. All of the birds on the big fake tree you had seen when you first arrived were gone. Maybe Holly had gone and taken them with her. You practiced camouflaging yourself. It seemed like an appropriate time to practice your main defense. You tried to find ways to pass the time. There were books, but you didn't understand most of the print. There was a television, but you didn't understand how it worked. You were alone with your thoughts. 

You decided to go to were the pool connected to his room and dip your hooves in the water. You considered trying to swim, but it probably wasn't the best time to learn. Not when you were completely alone and couldn't yet keep your head above water on your own. You stared into the water, thinking of nothing in particular. Your heart raced as you heard a loud knock at the door. You felt like you could have died from shock. For a split second, you thought it was Danny, but there was no reason for him knock on his own door. Reluctantly, you went to answer whoever it was, remembering just a bit too late that you were only wearing one of Danny's oversized shirts.

"Um, hello," You greeted before even opening the door completely. The face that greeted you was completely unfamiliar. Grey hair and a hard stare. What caught your attention were the fangs. You hadn't seen them as much as werewolves but you knew of them. Vampires.

"Where is Dan?" The voice that accompanied the vampire was not what you expected, and the tone was much more confused than menacing. 

"He left hours ago," You answered truthfully. "Why are you here?"

"I called him this morning to meet me and he never showed up. Who are you?" He didn't sound hostile, but you still flinched a little as his fangs flashed with his last word.

"____. I live here with Dan now." You added this as you remembered one thing about vampires. They couldn't enter your home without being invited in. This was your home now as well, and you had the power to decide whether this vampire could come in or not. 

"Well, I must say I have respect for you. Everything I've heard and observed in this short time has gone against everything I know about fawns. Away from the herd, modern lifestyle, standing face-to-face with a much stronger beast and holding your ground, interspecies, hmm, relationship..." He grinned maliciously and you felt your face and ears get hot. The grin was gone from his face and he was now watching you intently. Could he sense your blush? He shook his head. "I'm Brian, by the way. I'm a good friend of Dan's." Why, you had to ask yourself, did Danny have so many dangerous friends?

"I suppose you want me to invite you in?" You crossed your arms and kept a straight face, but you couldn't keep your ears from folding back.

"That won't be necessary." Your heart nearly stopped. "I'm aloud in whenever I want." He stepped inside right in front of you and your legs fell from under you as you stepped back. "I was just messing with you." You weren't sure whether to be terrified or annoyed so you just put your hands over your face and froze. If he was going to attack you, there was probably nothing you could do about it. "Now that's the classic fawn move I've come to know and love: 'Giving Up and Hiding in Plain Sight'. Seriously, though, I won't hurt you." You looked up.

"How can I trust you?" You didn't stand up. You didn't look at him. You just scowled at the ground like an angry child.

"Would Dan really give me a free pass to come into his room whenever if I was a bad guy?" He had a point, but you still weren't too overjoyed that he had free range of the place now. Not just because he was a vampire.

"Okay, so you're not, like, evil or whatever. I already saw you almost lose it when I blushed. What happens if I scrape an elbow or something?" You really had no real argument if he was messing with you the whole time. Really, you were just picking a fight with him. 

"You picked up on that? Like, you saw a slight change in my demeanor and concluded right away that it was because of a change in your own blood flow? That's actually really impressive." He sounded genuine, but you didn't trust him for a minute.

"Are you fucking with me again?" You finally stood up and confronted him. You immediately regretted it when he started stepping closer.

"No, this time I'm actually being sincere. Are you sure you're completely fawn? As I said before, you behavior deviates far from any other member of your species I've ever encountered. Maybe it's a change in environment. And to address your concern for your own safety, I won't go nuts if you scrape your elbow." You stepped back as he kept getting closer, examining you. 

"I don't believe you." You absolutely did not believe him.

"Trust me. I wouldn't kill any resident of this household. Especially not one Dan has taken particular interest in." He continued to get closer as he talked. Almost as if he wasn't aware of his own movement. "I mean, you're wearing his shirt. I can smell him all over you. I'm no idiot." 

"I still don't trust y-" You fell back when your hoof failed to connect with the floor and instead sunk into the pool, taking you with it. You didn't realize where you were for the. first few seconds. You gasped and all that entered your lungs was wet fire. Suddenly, you were back in the wreckage of the ship. Riley sunk below you and Kelly floated lifeless above. The water was filthy. Filthy with whatever floated off their bodies, and you were swallowing it. You had no choice but to swallow the filth. You started thrashing, but you only sank. Two arms came around you, but not Danny's this time. You were back in his room. On your hands and knees coughing. All over again. Brian patted your back with just a slight added force meant to encourage you to cough up the water. The filth. There was a strange gentleness to his voice and he spoke to you.

"It's okay. You're okay. It's over now." Small encouragements mumbled in-between shooshes and slight humming. You tried to sit up, but just collapsed onto the now wet floor and started sobbing. You saw the two girls in your head. No amount of coughing could get the filth of their deaths out of your body. You sobbed, and Brian didn't question it. He just continued is light purring of comfort and kept a hand on your shoulder. After a while, you stopped crying, but didn't get up. He brought a few towels and walked you to the couch.

"Sometimes the others cry, too." You didn't have to guess at what he was talking about. The door opened and Dan came inside looking frantic. 

"Brian, what the fuck." He sounded angry, but in a concerned way. "I've been looking for you all day and you've just been here. I thought something happened. Why didn't you wait for me?" Dan didn't seem to notice you, which didn't bother you, but Brian obviously felt differently. Probably just because he wanted to take negative attention off himself. At least, you assumed he didn't want negative attention.

"Hey, if I wasn't here, your mate would have drowned," He countered in a convincing tone considering he was the reason you fell in the pool in the first place. His distraction worked and Danny was checking on you in a heartbeat. You decided not to tell him all of what happened. 

"I was waiting by the pool for you and stood up to get something to eat, but my hooves were still wet and I slipped. I thought it was you who pulled me out of the water, but I was surprised to see it was Brian here." You stopped the story there before your lie got too involved. You felt terribly guilty lying, but you didn't feel this was an appropriate time to rat Brian out.

"Please don't go near the pool anymore when I'm not here. Only a few of the others can swim." Danny kissed your forehead and suddenly looked even more concerned- if that was even possible. "You're freezing." He left, probably to get something warm for you to change into, or a few blankets. 

"Hey, thanks for that," Brian whispered.

"No problem. I owe you my life after all." You couldn't hide the sarcasm, but you really were thankful for the way he handled it. Danny came back with both a new shirt and boxer shorts and three blankets. You went to go change. As soon as you left, you knew the two of them were talking about things you were not meant to know, and you couldn't help but try to listen in. All you could make out was some bickering and then low, muffled discussion. No words stuck out. You only had the tone of their voices to go off of. Before you went back, you caught a glimpse of something troubling outside. The moon was as nearly full. It didn't take a genius to consider the possibility that whatever they where talking about just out of earshot was related to this.

When you finally made your way back to the boys, they had on their best "everything's okay" faces. You might have been convinced if you didn't know any better, but you decided to play along anyways. You sat next to Danny and shared the blankets with him. Brian sat on the other side of him. No one said much as Danny turned on the television. You watched him very carefully as he used the remote, making mental notes of the function of each button. There was some bickering over what to watch. Laughter where laughter was intended in the sitcoms. Snack breaks.

You would have almost thought everything was okay.


	8. Nothing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy here we go. I considered breaking this one up into separate parts, but I think I've kept y'all waiting long enough.

Apparently they made watches that kept track of the phases of the moon instead of keeping time. It might be a good idea to invest in one of those. 

You'd seen many a harvest moon before, but the word "harvest" never came to mind. No, you had always associated the occasion with slaughter. Barry and Suzy weren't the ones being locked up this time. It would be pointless. Instead, you were locked up to keep you safe. Arin and Kevin were there to keep you company. They seemed just as nervous as you. You had found out that Brian's visit was both a warning and a safety precaution. His safety being the concern. He'd also lose control, and vampires were some of the most hunted beasts by humankind. The harvest moon was practically a holiday for hunters. 

You learned that Moon Beasts became very talkative in the days before a full moon. Between the three of them, you felt like you'd run out of room to keep all of the information they kept prattling on about to you every time you found yourself locked in a conversation with them. What they told you ranged from rants about personal interests to unsettling comments when you saw their demons trying to break through. Despite these occasional comments, you actually enjoyed listening to them. At times they sounded like excited children telling you about everything they were passionate about. As much joy as this brought you, it also awakened a new feeling of sadness and worry. You realized that they had as much of a chance of being killed as you did, if not more. 

You still avoided Barry more often than not. To you, the demon in him was more prevalent than in the other two. You could smell him on you even after he left. No, not him, the monster. You wanted to trust him, but the monster overpowered him. It smelled you and tried to break through. You wondered if you could ever get close to Barry. You drew the monster out of him, and you knew he was struggling to control himself. He whispered awful things in your ears.

"I know you're not the one saying this," You said once when the monster went to far. "but I can never trust you. You are at the mercy of your monster, and that monster is obsessed with me." You saw both him and the monster react at the same time. Sharp teeth grinned, but soft eyes apologized for the grin. You didn't see him again until the day before the moon. When you made your rounds saying goodbye to everyone who would stay above ground when you went into hiding. Danny wouldn't be joining you.

"How bad does it get," You asked him. 

"Hellish at best." He wasn't even trying to lie to you. You both knew survival was far from ensured. "Beasts and humans will be trying to kill us. Suzy, Brian and Barry usually escape after about an hour. They worst of It passes after a couple days. The hardest part is making sure Brian isn't out at sunrise. He never goes as haywire as the other two, though." Danny told you all this in the most casual way he could. 

"I can't picture you fighting." You really couldn't, but apparently he was capable of it.

"I try not to, but it's hard when everyone's trying to kill everyone. Luckily, Holly is pretty savage and takes care of a lot of problems before they happen." 

"There's gotta be something I can do," You half-pleaded. 

"Root for me." This wasn't the answer you wanted. You kissed him too many times to count before you joined Arin and Kevin at the top of the stairwell leading underground. 

There were two rooms for Suzy and Barry. All three of you stayed in Barry's room because Suzy's was infested by poisonous spiders. It just wasn't worth the risk. Arin carried two large bags full of food and bottled water and each of you brought your own effects with you. The room wasn't damp and dreary like you imagined. Not exactly comfortable, but you could survive for a few days. More than you could say for everyone above ground.

It wasn't even the day of the moon yet, but things were already going south. After about five hours, Arin looked like he was about to have a breakdown. You weren't doing much better. Kevin offered you alcohol, but you turned it down. For the moment at least.

"Has anyone ever been killed on a night like this? You know, anyone who lived here." You were just trying to break the silence, but maybe that wasn't the best topic to bring up.

"No," Arin answered in a surprisingly steady voice. "People have left, though, because of the added danger. Not everyone is okay with living with a werewolf and a shapeshifter." There was a long silence. 

"I'm terrified of Barry." No one looked surprised. 

"He's afraid to be around you," Arin countered.

"Why? I'm prey. Not just to him, but to like, most carnivores." 

"You make him lose control," Arin answered as if it was obvious. "He respects you. A lot. Don't tell Dan, but he was a little messed up when it became obvious you two were a thing." You weren't sure how you felt about that, but it wasn't good. "I don't think he was full on hitting on you, but there was definitely something there. And that messed him up even more, because, you know. The werewolf thing." The worst part was, this wasn't hard to believe. 

"Hey, Kevin. I think I'll take that beer now." 

...

Arin was checking his watch like, well, clockwork. It was getting dangerously close to sunset. Every footstep that creaked above on the ground floor alerted you. There were so many people you were worried about, yourself included. Over and over you played out what would happen if someone came downstairs in your head. Gruesome images flashed through your head. Both memories of slaughtered herds and imaginings of what might happen in the hours to come. Suddenly, you felt the urge to go back upstairs. 

"There's gotta be something I can do." You spoke just clear enough for the others to understand you. "I'm not made for fighting. I'm made for being food and eating all the fucking plants and shit."

"Woah there. Where's this coming from?" Arin sat up from his slouched position against the wall.

"That's what I do. Just eat all the food. Get nice and fat for the predators." Your words were terribly slurred, and it felt like the words were coming from somewhere other than your own thoughts. "I'm just gonna eat all our food!" Your volume control was suffering as well. "At least put me to use and feed me to the predators. It's the shitty fuckin circle of life."

"Wow, after only one beer, too. Finally someone who's more of a lightweight than me." Kevin snickered a little, but he meant no real harm. Arin sighed loudly. 

"Why do all woodland creatures love to drink even though they can't handle alcohol? I swear every pixie, water sprite, nymph, fawn you name it. You're all just magical high school freshmen." Arin had returned to his casual slouch against the wall, but seemed a little more lighthearted. 

"I feel like that's racist. Is that racist?" Kevin was jokingly asking you.

"Pretty racist." You started chuckling and didn't remember stopping. 

You woke up in absolute misery with a mysterious extra beer bottle held loosely in your hand. Kevin was asleep or at least resting his eyes and Arin was playing on one of his devices. His eyes darted up for only a second when you groaned and stretched your limbs. He kicked a plastic bottle full of bright yellow liquid over to you. The label had and orange lightning bolt on a silver background. 

"What's this? Is it morning?" For just a moment, you forgot Why you were locked away.

"Gatorade and no. You passed out at like four or something and now it's the middle of the night." You still had a few questions regarding the bottle of lighting juice, but Arin seemed busy.

You decided to set up a proper sleeping space. If you were going to feel sick and miserable you'd at least stop doing it on the hard floor. And oh boy, did you feel sick and miserable. 

"The Gatorade is supposed to help. I brought it for Kevin, but you're both pretty small. You can probably share." You slowly sipped the 'Gatorade'. You weren't sure what you were expecting, but somehow the flavor made complete sense. It helped a little, over time. Arin was absorbed in whatever he was doing on the device. Maybe he was just distracting himself. You didn't hear anything going on upstairs, but that didn't mean nothing was happening. 

"It sounds pretty calm up there." You tried to make small talk.

"It's probably a hellscape outside." Arin still didn't look up.

"Should I check?" You really wanted to go upstairs. 

"I know you're worried, but you can't help. We just weren't made for fighting." There was the smallest waver in his tone. Of course he was worried, too. How many times had he had to go through this?

"It was a lot worse in the sticks." You got his attention for just a moment. "We didn't have shelter, camouflage was no use. All we could do was run until our legs gave out. But then they started making weapons. Just spears and such, but it was enough if you got it right in the eye of a beast. I always went for the legs, though."

"Why, because you're short," Arin teased, but he was now paying full attention to you. You laughed a little. 

"Because the eyes are the part that always looks sorry." His goofy smile faded. "Every time I'd look a monster in the eye, I saw the innocent beast trapped inside. I aimed for the legs because it stopped the monster without killing the beast." Arin looked at you for a long time, almost examining you.

"I still don't think you should go out there, but I won't stop you. You might not be a predator, but you're just what we need." 

You left when you heard a crash upstairs. 

...

Never had you regretted not learning the layout of the house more than when you had to navigate it while your life was in danger. Barry was somewhere in the house. You were somewhere else. You didn't know where either of you were. You came upon a familiar area. It was just a hallway, but you recognized it as the way to Mark's room. You could already tell he wasn't there, but this still meant you were closer to Danny's old room. 

As you jogged in that direction, you wished your hooves didn't make such a loud noise on the floor. At first because you didn't want to give up your position, but then you realized your own noise had been covering up the sound of claws scraping the floor dangerously close behind you. You shouldn't have waisted time looking, but something in you said you had to. 

Werewolves didn't look as much like wolves as the name would suggest. They had fur, a tail, lethal claws, but their faces were twisted in a strange, unnatural way. This one, though. This one you recognized. This one you could pick out of a whole pack of them. Because this one looked more than sorry that he was chasing you. He whined when you ducked behind a door and howled when he clawed his way through. This one was Barry, and you could tell he hated himself for it. More than any werewolf you'd ever seen. 

This was the hardest battle you'd ever fought, because injuring him wasn't an option. He almost took up the entire room you had nearly corned yourself in. When you got out, you knew where you were going- outside. You didn't know if it would be any better, but it was your best option at the moment. 

He tailed dangerously close behind you. When you went to open the door leading outside, he caught up and you felt his claws puncture your thigh. At first, you were too shocked to feel anything. Searing pain set in as you stumbled out the door, Barry close behind, but not going after you. This gave you a chance to stumble away. 

You probably didn't get far enough before collapsing to catch your breath and examine your wound. It wasn't nearly as bad as it felt. You were bleeding, but not excessively. As long as you could wrap it up soon, you'd probably be fine. Then, I thought entered your head. Was it possible for you to be turned into a werewolf? You'd heard of other, similar occurrences. Vampire fawns where strangely common and it wasn't unusual for one of your kind to be possessed by this or that spirit. You weren't even sure if a small scratch like this would be enough, or if it had to be a bite. Maybe you were thinking of rabies. You didn't have much time to think of anything more before you realized your error in going outside.   
Maybe "hellscape" was a bit of an overreaction, but it definitely wasn't pretty. And by no means safe. In the distance, you saw hulking beasts and what appeared to be humans locked in battle. A gun would fire every now and then, no doubt loaded with silver bullets. You then saw the second error in your plan. You had drawn Barry outside into the danger. Both of you would be hunted tonight. 

You ran again to look for someone who could help, or at least something to defend yourself with. You got closer to the battle as you searched for dropped weapons. Something glimmered under the moon, and you ran towards it. It was dangerously close to where the humans and beasts clashed, but you needed something to defend yourself. You picked up the object which looked like a large knife and made a U-turn back closer to the house. 

You heard part of the battle break off, and prayed you were just imagining the panting and growling behind you. It grew closer, and you knew denying it would just get you killed faster. You spun around to face the monster, a werewolf, but it looked more like a mangy coyote than a wolf. It looked surprised when you turned to face it, and didn't move soon enough to avoid being slashed across the nose with your knife. This was only enough to stop it for a moment as you reared back to attack again. You got in one more slash across the chest before the monster overpowered you and pinned you down. It opened its mouth of jagged teeth wide and was about to bite down on your head before something tackled it, letting you escape. 

You stood, expecting to see anyone else but him. Barry was know locked in combat with the other werewolf which looked so fragile and small compared to him. You could only watch as the ragged one desperately tried to fight back. It was weaker, but its claws still left grizzly gashes in Barry's sides when it lashed out. Barry took one particularly lethal swipe and the other werewolf fell back, blood spilling from its abdomen. 

"You betray you own pack," It growled in a voice you didn't expect from a werewolf. Hoarse and animal-like, but somehow soft. 

"She is part of my pack." This was entirely Barry's voice. There was no trace of the monster. He looked back to you and you saw him in control, but only for a moment before he ran off and left you and the injured werewolf behind. You cautiously approached the writhing monster. It's ribs were partially visible and some of its organs were falling out. It looked at you, and its eyes pleaded. You drew up the knife and plunged it into the beast's chest. There was a sickly sound and a whimper and then the beast went limp. No longer a monster, just the corpse of a beast. 

Your leg was still bleeding slightly. Obviously no arteries had been cut or you would be bleeding out, but it was still a nuisance. Not to mention the "extra attention" you got because of your wound. You weren't helpless, though. Barry didn't swoop in to rescue you again, and thankfully you didn't need him to. 

You risked the battle to gather more weapons. You wanted to take a shotgun you came across, but you had no idea how to use it. More than once you looted the corpse of a hunter. Looking down on their blank faces, you still felt pity for them. Even if they did come to kill your kind. The more weapons you had on your person, the safer you felt. Maybe you felt a little too safe, let your guard down too much. 

You felt untouchable until six sharp claws sunk into your shoulders. They weren't claws, though. They were talons. They lifted you off the ground with ease, and the pain intensified. Just below your hooves, a monster pounced right where you had been standing. 

"What are you doing outside," A frantic, familiar voice shouted down to you. Not in a scolding manner, but just worried and confused. Holly set you down on one of the metal branches of the artificial tree you had grown to love the sight of. The branches were wider than you'd thought and you could sit rather comfortably. Holly fluttered her wings a bit and then perched next to you. "Was the cellar breached?" 

"No no no," You put your hands up and waved them as you reassured the almost frantic kinnara. "Arin let me leave."

"Why the heck would he do that?" You now had a new understanding what it meant to "ruffle someone's feathers".

"I don't know. I-I told him how I used to have to fend of werewolves back home and he said he wouldn't stop me if I left." Maybe this was a bad idea.

"Well, you're probably better off staying up here until this all dies down a little. At least until we can get someone else to escort you back to the basement. I'm useless on the ground." Holly looked like she was about to take off.

"Wait." Holly stopped to listen. "You're just leaving me here?"

"It won't take long," She assured before ascending back into the sky. You wondered who she was fighting up there. Maybe she just kept watch. 

Whatever she did, it did take long. Or it at least felt like it. You tried your best to see past the clouds, but saw only vague figures against the orange background created by the light of the moon. Yes, she was fighting something. Harpies were the first thing that came to mind. You remembered the Thunderbird from back home. Then the winged sirens Danny had told you about. Oh, where was he in this mess? Was he fighting on land with you, the monsters and the hunters? No, he was anything but graceful on land. He had to be fighting some foe in the sea. 

You thought only of werewolves when the moon was full. The truth was, beasts of all kinds were slaves to their primal instincts. Monsters emerged from everywhere- land, sea and sky. Even you came out to fight tonight. You have blood on your hands, and in your veins. Blood of prey that boils to be predator. But you are not. 

When the clouds break apart, you see the stone monster. Something that shouldn't be able to fly, but soars towards you with incredible ease. You struggle to get from branch to branch. This is not your home. Once again you are lifted into the air. This is not your fight. The only thing left to do is watch the strange scene below you. You can't make out faces, but somehow you know. They all look up. A half-morphed monstrosity who cast spells to protect everyone, a mindless wolf man who saved you and cared despite your prejudice, a bloodsucking demon who calmed your own demons, an imp who you already knew was a good soul the moment you met him, the kinnara who couldn't make it in time and the siren who you knew you loved. The siren who told you to stay underground to avoid harm. The siren who plucked you from the sea which planned to kill you and made you a part of this family. The siren who you know is screaming, but cannot hear over the rush of wind past your ears. Danny, who is the last thing in your mind before you die.

...

You're not where you were a moment ago. It's nothing. Not darkness or light, but sheer nothingness. Something that was impossible for you to fathom just a few seconds ago, but somehow it makes perfect sense now. You feel nothing. Except warm. Now blissful. Now everything's okay. You feel like you could melt into the nothingness. But you don't. You should be, but you aren't. 

"I'm sorry we never got to chat much before." The voice is not part of the nothing. The voice is Mark's, and this makes perfect sense to you. He exists in front of you as something that you could never have understood before. "I had to pull a lot of strings to make sure I was the one to collect you, but I think it's worth it. We have a lot to talk about." Suddenly, he is once again as you knew him before. The nothingness is now an extensive scape of tree stumps and wet earth.

"This is where I was born." You state this without question, because it is fact. "It was so much prettier when I was growing up."

"They miss you. You would tell Holly of the birds you used to feed and she would come find them to surprise you. She would find your herd and tell them you were alive. Your two brothers would visit you on occasion." This all makes perfect sense.

"Hunter was born just four minutes before me. Chase was so much older. Both of them were much bigger and stronger than me." You reminisce, but not for long. You are in a city apartment on the ground floor. It is homely, but there is no one inside.

"Dan would have taken you to New York City where you would have found the centauride's family. You and the family would share a very emotional evening together as you explained what happened. They would be sad, but finally have closure. While in New York, Dan planned to propose, but would get cold feet. At that point in your life, you would understand what it meant to propose." You do not understand what it means, but it still somehow triggers a feeling of melancholy in you. You are now on a beach, but not like the one by your home.

"You would have spent many sleepless nights researching mermaids in an attempt to find out the possible places the mermaid you shared a cell with could have come from. You would finally narrow it down to four locations, and get lucky on your second try. Dan would travel to the underwater village, leaving you behind to wait for hours while he asked around. Eventually, he would return with close to the entire village. You would tell them your tale and they, too, would find closure. To thank you for what you did, they gifted you with a small trinket worn on a string around your neck. It was supposed to grant wishes, but you would never try to use it."

"I had to have tried it at least once." Thinking about it now, you know your curiosity would get the best of you, but maybe you grew out of it in the story Mark is telling. He smiles at you, but it fades quickly. You are now back home. Your real home in the gigantic house on the shore.

"You would never appear to age, but you would still grow old. You would fall asleep at your work desk one night and never wake up. Only Barry would understand because you never told anyone else of your species' short lifespan. You would die at the healthy age of twelve. Dan would never get to propose, and it would eat at him for the rest of his life. Both your brothers would outlive you, and they would explain it all to everyone at your funeral. They would also explain that you were never expected to live past a year. No one would take comfort in this." You understand now why Mark stopped smiling, but there's one thing you don't understand. 

"Was I not supposed to die here? How can all of this be predetermined if it was my destiny all along to die at this moment?" You are looking Mark straight in the eye, and starts to abstract again. 

"You don't die here." He smiles, and it's the clearest thing in the foggy nothing. "This is just what would have happened if it wasn't for this."

...

You are not alive, but you are awake. A burning sensation consumes you, and you miss the nothing which is fading from you by the second. Someone is tilting your head back. Someone is sobbing. Someone is holding you down. Someone is watching intently and someone is protecting all of you. The only other thing you can process is the pain. It starts in your neck and pulses through to the rest of you. 

You are not sure if your eyes are open. You see, but somehow it's false. Something bitter touches your lips. Somehow you know you need this. Your eyes were open the whole time, but now you can see for real. It is hard to move, and to process. You see Brian wiping blood from his mouth and off his wrist while Danny wipes tears from his eyes. Ross leans back and lets go of your limbs. Holly stands back and watches with Barry who looks less wolf-like than you remembered. Suzy is in control again and casts a shield around the company. You turn your head and your first instinct is to run your tongue over your top row of teeth. You are somehow not surprised, but shocked.

"I was just getting used to living in a modern house and having a siren for a boyfriend. This is gonna set me back at least a year." You smile a fanged smile and everyone erupts in expressions of joy and sorrow and excitement all at once. Danny has you in his arms and kisses you too many times to count. You look past him to the moon. A figure with six wings blocks the light and you can feel the violence in the world around you slowly settle.

...

After bugging Mark every chance you got, you finally got some answers out of him. You were never meant to leave the shelter, you were never meant to leave the woods. You were one of those rare beings who just wasn't bound to fate. Not exactly in control, but never tied to one path. Mark was officially put in charge of what he called "Make sure ____ doesn't fuck up the natural order of too much" duty. He was still just as busy, but around a lot more often. 

Your memories of what had happened between your fall and being "revived" faded just enough to keep some possibilities a surprise. Though, you did make sure to tell Holly about those birds. 

You can't say the transition from what was essentially roadkill to weird vampire hybrid was fun, but it definable opened up many doors that Mark tries his best to manage. The greatest gift you had been given was time. You finally told Danny one night that you wouldn't have lived very long if it wasn't for your accident. Despite the fact that this was no longer true, he took it pretty hard. But after a while he laughed and said,

"I guess it's a good thing you keep putting yourself in danger, then. Just ease up on it a little, okay? I don't need to be seeing you die anymore. The first time was traumatic enough." He kept his light tone, but his eyes pleaded with you. You ran a hand over the place where your right antler used to be. It broke off when you hit the ground. It would never grow back. 

"I guess I'll have to stop putting garlic on my food. And no more silver jewelry for me." You tried to keep up the playful mood, but both of you knew that night would haunt not just the two of you, but everyone for the rest of your lives. And if you played your cards right, you had a very long life ahead of you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You're in control


End file.
